Weetless fabric



' original Filed April 26. 1926 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

.Patented .liano 3 WEFTLESS FABRC.

original application area Api-n as, 1926, semi No. 104,5?5. niviaa ami aus appiianon filed n v f 1927. serial Nuiseso.

, 'lhis application a division of my prior application SerialfNo. 104,575, led April 26, 1926. Y j

This invention relates toa method ot' rendering a roving, spun yarn, or a twisted yarn more elastic 4or elastic in amore useful manner than the usualmethods followed in the production ot' these articles. The invention includes the new articles produced by the methodas well as apparatus for carrying out the method and various features of invention which will be pointed out in the claims. A f n .The new `method broadly consists in artilicially andindependently crimping the individual strands of roving, spun or twisted yarn, and thus producingv the articles with what may be termed a permanent wave or crimped characteristic. The degree ot crimp or thefnumbcr oit waves per unit of length will depend on the elasticitydesired in the strand; It is obvious that the more crimps or waves in the strand, the more elastic it will be. Y Y lfleretotore,,individual strands of thread or cord have been rendered elastic by partic-y ular ways of spinning, twisting or braiding. According to my invention, individual I strands of cotton may be rendered elastic in whatever stage they are taken for treatment,

' whether from roving's, or from any of the differently spun or twisted threads or cords,

because whatever Jformer 'well-known product ll start; with the elasticity is imposed upon it by mycrimping method. Y

For example," may take an Ordinary cord or thread such'as used in cord ytire constructions and give it any desired number of crimps per inch with a hand crimping iron @of suitable size, similar to what ladies use for crimping their hair. A better way is to run the cord between corrugated crimping.

rolls.k y c ,n It is true that the so-called artificial permanen'twave or crimp in hair as also in the 'textile cords I treatpfwill ordinarily be lost due toyarious causes.` The vchief lcause is any longitudinal stra-in beyond the capacity oit' ythe crimp to withstand causing the ibers to reset without crimp; To avoid the loss ot" benefit from the crimpingoperation, I planV sutliciently p April 25,

as one teaturexotmy invention to use my' 'crimped strands inassociation'with other material, or under circumstances where the crimp will be retained long enough or per-y l .crimped strand in rubber andone of the principal uses I have inmind for the invention is the art ot' making lup laminated cord and rubber layers vtor building the strainresistinp; carcass of cord tires.

The invention will be made clear by reiference to the accompanying drawings.`

Fig. l shows one form of apparatus for crimping a series ofcords to give them a ermanent vset for subsequent use;

Fig, 2 crimped` cords between one or more sheets ot uncured rubber to malte a laminated strucstrand; and f c Fig. 6 shows in the cross-section of two' Vrubber sheets the crimpedfstrandembedded therein as allinished lar'ninated the rubber. y n y Bue to the wide knowledge by men skilled product with `shows an apparatus tor laying the l in the art of the means and apparatus iork handling independent textile strands, I

have not complicated my drawings by showing' those detail operating parts, which canL be readily supplied` aspure mechanical de-'f tail as 'understood froinmy description. n Referring to Fig.1',-aser1es 'of painllelV cores c may be drawn under tension through rolls lrfrom any suitable source oi' supply'` as a creel. The rolls 3 beyond the rolls l` lare positively ydriven tofdraw the cores c` through a closed m istening chamber 2.

vThe latter, of course, has openings at eaclr end suiicient for the passage of thecords.

.sill

it is desirable to drive the rolls o vSteam may be used tor moistening purposes so that the cords will be substantially heated as vvell as moistened during their passage through the chamber 2.

lt is in'iportant to have the rolls 3 drauf the cords at a uniform rate under uniform tension so that they Will be delivered to the crin'ipine' rolls 4 in a uniform manner. The crimping rolls et may be et metal when it is desired to heat them internally, but ordinarily they are preferably ot Wood such as highly polished maple. These rolls each have their surfaces corrugated so that the corrugations cross the cords. ln this respect the rolls like toothed cylinders or gears except that the internieshing teeth are carefully rounded to avoid cutting the cords and yet of sntl'icient size to crimp the cords. The latter pass between the crimping rolls whichv are pressed together suti'icieiitly by ordinary spring mounted bearings `or bearing adjusting means to torce the cords firmly int-o successive corrugations of the rolls.

The number or corrugations on the rolls er inch ot eri )lier of course determines a i a the number ot crimps per inch the cords pas 'iig through the rolls. @n `this account l so aste deliver tiie coros to rolls l to coii'ipensate for the length of cord taken up b the crin'iping operation. The delivery of cords troni rolls 3 should pre terably be 'tast enough as coni` pared to the take up of rolls l so that the cords can be crimped while they are ot siiibstantial tension, and can be delivered trom rolls .l without substantial tension whereby the crimp may be retained in the cord to the greatest degree. lhe driving relation betvreen rolls 3 and rolls is. with this explanation a simple matter et proper gearing troni the main drive shaft. llhen it is desired to change the number or size et the crimps imposed on the cords, suitably patterned rolls for the desired crimping operation may be inserted as rolls #l and the driving gears changed to give the desired.

relative speed lor rolls 3 and it is desirable to drive all rolls 3V and el positively tov best control the crimping operation.

[is the cords are delivered 'from rolls 4f, l preferably deposit them on a rdelivery be t 5 to avoid drawing them undertension in succeedingl operations. They pass with their' supporting conveyor 5 through a,suitalile' drying chamber 6; The conveyor' is preterably driven at the same speed as the delivery oit the crimped cords from rolls rlhe drying chamber is supplied i vvith dry heat a by dry air so as to dry and set the crin'ips in the cords. The latter may Lei-oiled up on the spool .7 bearing on top of the conveyor 5 and mounted in slot bearings S, which is a usual form ol Wind-up directly from a corivever by which tension iii the wind-un operation avoided. The coros thus deiivered have been inoisteiied, crimped and dried ivhile crimped, vviiereby they Will retain their torni sulliciently for subsequent use. 'l here Vare other Ways to retain the crimp as Will be this use is that the. elasticity of the cord vvill more nearly approach the elasticity o the rubber. ltlieii the. rubber is vulcanized van the cord bondedl to it in crimped conon, the crimp is retained by the perinanent set of the rubber. is the rubber stretches and then returns to its original conthe bonoet cord toits original er pedV condition. Another use which the crimped cord has with rubber even before vulcanif/Mion is that a sheet ot plasibber ha ing crimped cords as the i sisting clement -iiiay be shaped, as

dition, it returns lor esaiiiple to tire form, with lessstiaiiiiiig of the cord or excessive displacement or cord and rubber thafi ifi uiiciiinped cord of the usual hind.

Braided cord and specially twisted cord have neretolorerbeen made up with tlie oboit giving the same general result of increased elasticity in association with rubber at least to seine degree; but l believe not to as satisfactory a degree as my crimped cord when combined -with rubber. l believe l ain fit to point out the adva tages ot controlling the elasticity ot the strain resisting cord through a Wide range by the crin'iping operation. Gf course, voveii cord has a definite crimp due to the Wett thread put during the Weaving operation. l3nt fuch crimp is an incident et the iveavi" best limited to a narrow degree o; usc nessyso tar as thev criiiip is concerned. Fui'- therii'iore7 the uf'ovenlzibrie has one cord, the ivet't-7 crossed with another. the voor', :1nd a .awing action vtakes place in use. rllie ela-Y ticity in Wov n cord due to the crimp is not ava i f substantial degreeuntil the ead is broken to releer this crimp for action with the rubber. While l do not desire to limit my invention 'with regard to the degree of elasticity added to the cord by my crimping step, vvhetlier o't than or equal to the degree ofcriinp due to weav-Y ing. l particularly point out that by my method l can far exceed iii amount the elasticity added to the corr as crimped in v-:eaving and that it is preferred to add elaf-ticity to the cord in such increased amount.

In Fig. 2, l have shoivn a conveyor 9 Whichiiay be placed in line with con i 5 and driven at the same speed. lii this case the cords c, instead et l their bare crimped condition. meet. :i la

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nemmeno second layer of such rubber so that the cords are ted between tWo layers ol rubber and along belt conveyor 9 Without longitudinal strain. rlhe liners tor the rubber sheets Wound up on rolls l2 and i3. The composite sheet. ol criinped cords between two layers oit rubber are drawn alongI by pressure rolls let positively driven at the conveyor speed and Wound vup in laminated 'torni on roll i7 *with a liner troni roll i5. 'llhis wind up i6 and il' is similar to the \vind-up T and tl except that a po ively driven roll lil takes the place ol the conveyor belt tor driving rolll'l' by friction so that its pei ripheral speed will always be the saine as the speed, of delivery o' the laminated sheet trono belt 9.

ln Fig, 3 l have shown the crimping; operation arranged adjacent a known torni et rubber` calender so that the laniinoting;` et the criinped cord betiveen two sheets oit hot rubber niay take place directly on the calend er `forniass production, particillarly in a tire Yltactory.

'lhe operation ot thus laminating closely spaced cords Without wett 'threads on a calender is already known but so tar as l know such co 'ts have always been ted under ionpgitudinal strain and coinbin-ed with the rubber sheets While under such strain.' The opeation heretofore carried out does not perinit a desired elasticity ot the cord in the laininated structure except as such cord inay be particularly spun or twisted to giveit such elasticity. rlhis prior practice is e;;- pensive and l believe is not nearly as usetul, all things considered, as the results of iny method, apparatus and product.

ln Fig. rolls 20, 2l, 22 and El are arranged in the ordinary inanner to sheet out rubber troni banks 24 and 25. The roll Elli is preferably a grooved roll arranged to press the cords c against the sheet ot rubber on roll 22 trein banlr. rlllhe cords then pass With roll 22 and ineot the rubber on roll 2l from bank 24. its the cords pass -With `the rubber between rolls 2l and 22, the `second rubber sheet is applied over the cords and the laminated product is ready tor cutting into tire building` strips or vtor other uses. The apparatus and operation so tar described on this calender is not my invention as it isalready known and in use :tor making;1 uncrii'nped .tlllerless or wettless rul berized cord sheets in the tire building art` lilith this apparatus l provide a suitable ineans, indicated generally as rolls tor the purpose o't drawing the spaced arrangeinent oit paralleland independent cords troni Creel supply with uniitorin tensionil as such cords have tornaerlybeen lcdiup to and ad jacent the calender. rllie ineans :tor this purpose is vvell known in the art and l have only indicated the step by showing; rolls Qi Without any atteinpt to show the detail apparatus tor this uniform tension drawing purpose.

Between the rolls 27 and the bite of rolls 26 and 22 l arrange niy crimping; rolls 2S,

preferably all as near together und to the calender as possible `under working;- conditions. '.lhe crinipiiip,4 rolls are both posi tively driven and the relative speed ot such rolls and the delivery troni rolls 2T is care` fully arranged just as the relativcspeed between the delivery rolls il and crimping rolls #l already described iu connection with Fig. l.

'lhe rolls deliver the cords last enough to the crimpingrolls itil so that the latter n'iay criinp all the cords and deliver then'i in crimped condition withoutsubstantial lon-- gitudinal tension and Without lateral distortion or appreciable iooseness except that due to the criinp, to the pressure roll 28. lo keep the cords spaced and to prevent thcni trein tangliro' l pieter to place a sepax17 ratei' such as a suitable comb or like Wellknoivn device hewn at 29 between rolls 28 and applying roll fll. 'llhe latter roll inay be grooved to apply the cords in proper alignment, and it should be understood that rollQG is mechanically pressed against roll 2Q so that the criinped cords are embedded in the rubber on the latter roll about as they would be il roll Q6 were a large calender roll like 22 and arranged as the lilith roll ot a calender coating` operation. 'the product l) is continuously delivered and handled as a laminated sheet accordingl to known n'ieans and usually Wound up with a liner ready tor subsequent operations as cutting.L

By changingl rolls 28 to desired patterns ot corrugations and the relative speed ot such rolls with the delivery troni rolls 2i', the nuniber and depth ot' corrugations may be What is desired. llllhere a Wide series et cords is ted to the calender' and closely spaced, the crin'ips given the cords by rolls 28 should be not inore in amplitude than about halt' the spacing; between the cords or anything1 less than such amplitude to avoid overlapping and insure a complete coverinpl ior `each cord with rubber on the calender, as this is desirable. l3nt the number oit co1'- rugations per inch may be niade according to the elasticity desired and is limited only by that degree to Which criinps may be lnade Without cutting the cords.

lt should be noticed that in the operation arrangement shown in Fig. 3 the cords are not moistei'ierh crimped and then dried. @n the contrary, theyT are so ted and einbedded `in the rubber that they retain all inherent elasticity ot each cord plus whatever deajree ot elasticity is added bythe nuinber and an. litude oi' the criinps as may be desireda iti-oni zero tov the nianiniuin nun'iber and site perniitted by Wtnkingl conditions. The advantage ol" the operation when no crinips llt) fcanized, the rubber is set and each are retained in the cord will be specially considered as the zero crimping` condition. rlhe tact that the cords are ted to the rubber Without any substantial longitudinal tension is important as it helps retain all inherent elasticity in the cord Whether crimped or not. lit Working conditions at the calendei'are such that a slight amount of longitudinal tension is desirable to properly feed the cords from rolls 2'? to the bite' of rolls 26 and 22, the crimping may be just enough to let such tension taire out the crimps and then the cords Will be embeddec Without crimps but Withoutlongitudinal strain on the cords they are embedded. This is the zero condition et cords above referred to and this Zero condition represents the full normal elasticity the strand or cord Without crimp. rlhe rubber layers, o" course, retain and lis such elasticity' or crimp in the cords as exists when the cords are em bedded in the rubberI sheets.

ln Fig. fl l have shown two corrugated plates 30 and 3lwhich may et iron. rEhe adjacent faces have matched corrugations. To malte myA product in a simple way l may lay one or more roif'ings7 spun or twisted yarns cross-Wise ot the corrugations on plate 30. These strands are prei" ably but not necessarily moistened. The plates are preterably heated. By pressing` both plates together the strand or strands are crin'iped between them. Then the strand may be removed in a lined crimped condition as shown in Fig. 5.

To make a composite cord or laminated sheet l may leavetlie strand or .strands in crimped condition on one of the plates, place a layer otplastic rubber or rubber cement or later: over the plate, and press the materials together. rlhen by reversing the operation and placing` the materials on the other plate, l may place additional rubber over the exposed strand and by themV pressing the plates together l'obtain the composite cord or strand, or laminated sheet accordingly as one'or a parallel spaced .series ot strands are covered as shown in llig. t5. lt

this composite cord or sheet is then vulcrimped strand is tilted and bound to the rubber in its crimped condition. @r a similar but not the full result can be obtained by using` .vulcanized rubber with a cemented vsurface to bind the cords or b f' buildin@ u) the ruba D l rees/,eee

posits cords or layers as ordinarily built up.

Furthermore, each strand may stretch with the rubber Without any sawing action ot cord upon cord in the case ot rubberized Woven fabric. Again the bond between the cord and. rubber nill be retained under more conditions olf strctcliing` or distortion than if the cord were not crimped.

W'lien a laminated .sheet oi cords surrounded by rubbr r is iliade up according; to my invention7 it may be used in the tire making` art fuibstantialli' the same :is laminated rubber sheets :ire now used. 'lfbe prinr cipal dil'lerence is that it will stretch better r-fith the rubber. .lt is quite possible that 'forming such .sheets in tire form substan- 'i all the crimp will be taken out in ie tire building` operations. Nevertheless ie strain-resisting membcri.: will have more sever i il :il c oipiera''ious were not com'iensated 'tor in iL or Wholly7 by the talie-up due to the rim condition ot the cords at the ned iis is ol particular importance in n tires where the degree olE elasticit \I oi the iii-resisting ii'lenibers ot the cur i"y imiiortzint. ln such tires, where the flexing action is at a niaxiniuni in tire use. the chance or i. realriiii` the bond between tbe cord und rubber is least Where the elasticitl\Y o? the cord more closely approaches the elasticity ol' the rubber or the useful range of :b elasticity. .-.rving' described my invention in its venous aspects, l claim:

l. il. composite structureI ot rubber and parallel cords which consists in :i series otl closelyY adjacent parallel crimped cords all oli which are separated one troni the other by rubber a (greater distance than the amplitude or" the crimp in the cord.

2. .fr composite elastic strain-resistinfi strip which consists ot a sgroup oli closely associated parallel cords bonded together solely by rubber. the separation of the cords being greater than 1Vdie amiilitude of their crimp, and the possible elongationo't the cords due to their crimp beine; .substantially less than the capacity ttor elastic movement ot the rubber.

3. A laminated structure comprising layers ot rubber and an intermediate hij-er ot parallel strainuesistinn' cords, .said cords being' bonded together solely by the layers of rubber which are joined together between the cords, the cords ot the intermediate layer being` crimped with less amplitude than the distance between the cords, said intermediate layer ot cords having` the capacity to elon- `irate due to the crimped condition ot the cord. a distance less than the capacity toi' elastic movement ot the rubber which rubber is `Without ciinipiiur.

l. il. laminated structure comprising an lill llO

intermediate layer of Wettless, strain resisting, parallel, individually crimped cords, all bonded together by tWo oppositely disposed outer layers ot rubber vulcanized together and with the cords only in crimped condition, the crimps in said cords being proportioned so as to have the normal stretching movement of the rubber eliminate the crimps When the rubber is stretched.

5. As a new article ot manufacture, an independent strain-resisting textile strand which is crimped and surrounded by rubber in its crimped condition.

6. As a new article o'I manufacture, an independent strain-resisting textile strand which is crimped and surrounded by vulcanized rubber.

7. A composite cord made up of an independently crimped cord or strand Whose crimps are bonded in vulcanized elastic rubn ber compound surrounding the cord and all arranged so as to be stretched Within the elastic limit oi the cord plus the elongation permitted by the crimps with such elastic limit arranged Within the elastic limit of the rubber alone 8. it laminated eheet of independent cords bonded by rubber, such cords having uniformly arranged crimps along their length arranged to increase their elasticity While bonded with the ubber.

9. A spun or twisted textile cord having crimps uniformly lined along its length in addition to its spun or twisted condition, all surrounded by rubber making up an independent composite straight cord of increased elasticity due to the embedded crimps.

HARRY B. HOlJSON. 

